Most of my childhood memories are based on television. Forgotten television programs/films/adverts form a substantial part of my sub-concious. I was speaking to someone about psychoanalysis the other day, and I got on to the idea of nostalgic group conversations ("Oh, you mean The Raccoons? [sings theme tune] What about Trap Door? Do you remember that? NO WAY!!! Knightmare? Yeah of course!! etc. etc.) as a form of naive psychoanalysis, or group therapy.

We root around in our childhood, dragging half-buried ideas and images from our long term memory, we parade them around and re-position them as value-objects. We assign certain images trauma value, holding others to us like comfort blankets or pop-culture mascots.

Turns out I'm not the only one to think of this...

kindertrauma.com is a website which encourages people to send in 'Traumafessions' about things that scared the shit out of them as children.


"KINDERTRAUMA is about the movies, books, and toys that scared you when you were a kid. It’s also about kids in scary movies, both as heroes and villains. And everything else that’s traumatic to a tyke!

Through reviews, stories, artwork, and testimonials, we mean to remind you of all the things you once tried so hard to forget…"

Like most websites recommended in the Guardian Guide, it sounds way funnier than it actually is. It is interesting to see how this idea of the trivial-as-life-forming is being played out online. I agree with the essence - that trivial things can have meaningful psychological impact. It is strange how these things become a form of 'sharing', where discussing your suppressed memories is deemed necessarily therapeutic, even if the therapy is based in humour.